Remote Control Toys Ideal for Kiosks

The market for remote control toys has grown immensely in recent years, and this is particularly true for kiosk vendors. The Valour Inc. launched three years ago, to capitalize on this burgeoning trend, and has grown four times its original size since then. Starting with helicopters (still the most popular sellers), the company now offers remote control trucks, boats and much more. The strong demand for and helicopters, and their popularity owes to the ease with which they can be demonstrated at open air kiosk locations. And whereas the earliest helicopters, Valour sold, were of the two-channel control variety, possessing vertical movement, the current models are four-channel, meaning they have both vertical and horizontal control.

In addition to being very easy to demonstrate, Valour’s remote control toys are also extremely attractive to kids of all ages, and even to adults. Currently, the company derives its product from a factory in China, under the watchful supervision of a designated engineer and quality control person appointed by Valour. The expectation is that Valour will be manufacturing its own toys domestically by sometime next year. As for this year, there will be a lot of new items offered, beginning in August, including an all new line of helicopters. Helicopters typically dominate sales from January to August, but once the holiday season approaches, pretty much everything The Valour offers is in the highest demand, with kiosk operators looking for anything that will sell briskly. And with the technology constantly improving, the remote control items are becoming more and more desirable. In addition to the added channels of movement, for example, the helicopters and other RC vehicles keep getting smaller and easier to learn how to control.

“The technology has helped the toy helicopter industry to get more functional and more fun,” says James Liu, Valour president and chief executive officer. “And there’s definitely an advantage to selling them in a kiosk rather than a regular store, because you have a lot of room in which to show them. We have a customer in a big mall who used two 60 inch LCD TV screens to demo the cars. The people just stare at the monitors, they don’t leave, and then they buy.” In addition to the boats, helicopters and trucks offered by The Valour Inc., buyers will also find such remote control items as airplanes, cars, tanks, hover crafts, track cars, stunt vehicles and even robots. And have no fear, because there is even the occasional girl oriented toy as well. For example, an automated sewing toy is currently featured. All these items and plenty more can be perused at The Valour Inc.’s website, http://valorsinc.com, where you will also find video demonstrations of some of the many products. These video demos are the very ones that many kiosk operators find useful in showing off these hot products to grab the attention of consumers at shopping malls and other locations.

“The hot feature for the helicopters is the gyroscope,” explains Liu. “We have built-in gyroscopes, and beginning in August, we will be selling only gyroscope helicopters. The gyroscope function is embedded into the toy’s chip set, which allows you to manipulate the helicopter very precisely. You can make a right turn and a left turn, and also go at different angles.”

The introduction of the gyroscope as a regular feature only serves to make remote controlled toys more in demand than ever, especially helicopters, which obviously benefit the most from the new technology, due to their ability to move in three-dimensional space. In order to get a better idea of the differences between the various channels of movement, as well as between gyroscope and non-gyroscope copters, buyers are encouraged to browse the Valour Inc. website. The website is also the place to go for The Valour Inc.’s monthly special offers. Last month the site featured many popular helicopters at special prices, including the Infrared Skylark minicopter, three-channel radio controlled large copter, mini AH-64 Apache, the newest version of the UH-60 mini Black Hawk helicopter, and the brand new Firewolf I mini infrared helicopter. The prices for each month’s special items are available via Valour Inc.’s phone line, at 713-781-1500.
Gift Certificates for Valour Inc. items may also be purchased from the online store like any other product, using standard payment methods. Once purchased, the gift certificate value is added to your own personal gift certificate account. The amount will show in the online shopping cart, and a link is then provided to a page where gift certificates can be sent via email. When sending a gift certificate, the user must specify the name and email address of the person who will be receiving it, as well as the amount to be sent. Funds stored in the gift certificate account can be used to buy other items in the online store. After any purchase, all leftover funds remain stored in the gift certificate account for future use. The Valour Inc. will take back items returned solely due to manufacturer or shipping defects, within one week from the date they were delivered to the buyer. For more information on the company’s return and refund policies, consult the website.

Wholesale prices for Valour’s RC toys range from about $12 to $85. The wide range is due to the large variety of sizes and number of control channels that are available. Suggested retail prices run anywhere from $39 to around $249. First time customers must have a pass ID to order, and the units must be purchased by the case, with a minimum order of $200 or higher.